Each year, around the time we prepare to celebrate Christmas, our Jewish friends celebrate Hanukkah. This year it starts at nightfall on December 8th and continues for eight days through December 16th.

It may come as a surprise to many of our readers that this holiday is alluded to in the New Testament. (Whereas Christmas is not: the observation of Christmas began in 354 a.d. from an adaptation of established pagan holidays. While there are several defendable estimates regarding the birthday of Christ, we know it was not in winter: the flocks were in open field, indicating sometime prior to October.)

In fact, Hanukkah highlights an historical event that Jesus Himself pointed to as the key to understanding the prophecies concerning His return!

John Chapter 10 is, of course, the famous Good Shepherd discourse. It clearly speaks for itself and won’t be dealt with here. Verse 22, however, seems to be a strange inclusion: right in the middle of this chapter the Holy Spirit notes the following: